Mich. Top Doc Says Eliminating COVID Is A ‘Pipe Dream,' People With Disabilities Remain At Risk

Michigan Advance

March 27, 2022

Although state health officials say Michigan is in a post-surge stage, future COVID-19 surges are likely to occur and residents with disabilities remain at risk.

On Friday morning, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) held another in a series of online town hall discussions, this time with a focus on individuals with disabilities and their caregivers. Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, DHHS chief medical executive, said that while the state is experiencing relatively low levels of COVID-19, the idea that we are done with the virus is not realistic.

“I think that the virus has entrenched itself here in a way that elimination of the virus, anytime in the near future is a pipe dream,” said Bagdasarian. “So we are not able to eliminate COVID infections right now. But what we’re trying to do is prevent those severe outcomes, which means that if you are vaccinated and boosted your risk of having a severe outcome is significantly less.”

DHHS dropped its statewide mask advisory for many indoor places in mid-February and earlier this month updated its quarantine guidance based on the lower levels of COVID-19 cases,

Additionally, for at least the second week in a row, the CDC COVID-19 community levels update on Thursday indicated that the majority of Michigan counties had low levels when it came to new cases and hospital admissions. Just a handful of counties in the Northwest Lower Peninsula were rated as having either medium or high levels.

However, Bagdasarian reiterated that the best way for people to make sure that they are safe for future surges is to not only make sure that they’re vaccinated, but that they’ve also had their booster shot.

“Guidance around that is likely to change in upcoming months,” she said. “It’s very possible that there may be more boosters in the future, and that’s only because the virus has been with us for a short time and we’re still learning about long-term immunity. So, we’re going to continue to look around us, look at other countries, look at other states and inform the public here in Michigan appropriately.”

Michigan currently has an overall vaccination rate (one or more doses) of 66.5%, putting it in the bottom third of state vaccination rates. About 59.6% of the state’s population has been fully vaccinated. Only 31.8% of the population has received a booster shot.

Also taking part was Annie Urasky, division director of the Division on Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing, Michigan Department of Civil Rights. Speaking through a sign-language interpreter, Urasky said it was a critical point to recognize that those with disabilities were not a “one size fits all community,” she said.

“There’s a lot of individuals who are uncertain as to what’s going to happen next. We’ve been through so much in the last two years and everyone might feel ‘How do we handle what’s next? What’s coming?’ People are starting to think these things now. We need to have that level of empathy and compassion and treat each as the same we would want to be treated,” Urasky continued.

Another participant was Dr. Melissa Davidson, an internal medicine/pediatric specialist at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo. Davidson, who is also the parent of a child with Down Syndrome, spoke to the concern of those who are immunocompromised or have additional underlying health issues and how they can stay safe during future surges.

“I think the good news is that [immunocompromised] individuals are really themselves and their family, probably most appropriate about taking precautions for themselves,” she said. “I think some of the sickest that we’ve seen in the hospital and many of the deaths were those that didn’t think they were vulnerable and therefore had bad outcomes, unfortunately.

“But I think the reality is also that we need to continue to educate because a lot of people with medical problems and complications and immune problems have some vaccine hesitancy and that when you sit down and educate them, when they are able to talk to their own specialists and the primary care providers that know them the best, they realized that they should really be kind of at the head of the list of getting vaccinated.”

Bagdasarian closed out the town hall with a reminder that while Michigan is in a lower-risk phase now, she didn’t know how long it would last.

“I just want to urge kindness and respect to those who are making choices in terms of masking and whether or not they’re participating in certain activities because of their own risk or comfort level,” she said. “And I think that we just need to be respectful of the decisions that each of us are making that are best for ourselves and our family members.”

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